The Feast of St. Andrew the Apostle and St. Hierarch Andrew Șaguna on Thursday, November 30th, 2023, was a joyous occasion for the clergy and faithful of Sts. Constantine and Helen Romanian Orthodox Cathedral in Chicago. Joining His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae at the Divine Liturgy were the clergy of the Cathedral and the two priest members of the Men's Choir of Finteușu Mare, Maramureș, Fr. Ionuț Lupșe and Pr. Ionuț Sadoveanu.
During his homily, Fr. Vasile Mureșan spoke about the missionary work of St. Andrew, the Apostle and patron of the Romanian people, and of St. Hierarch Andrew, who re-founded the Metropolia of Transylvania in 1864 and established a beautiful educational activity on different levels for the Orthodox Romanians of Transylvania.
In the afternoon, His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae, together with the cathedral clergy, participated in the celebration of the National Day of Romania at the Guardian Angel Orthodox Day School. Seven years ago, on the initiative of His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae, with the blessing of the parish priest, Fr. John Rallis, from the Greek parish of St. John the Baptist, the administration of Guardian Angel Orthodox Day School added the Romanian language to the school's Foreign Language program, along with Greek and Russian. The mission of this school is to provide children with a Christian Orthodox education by nurturing Christian virtues that lead to the discovery of the image of God in themselves and others.
Additionally, the Romanian language program was joyous to receive support from the beginning, both from the school and from parents. The ages of the children enrolled in the program range from 3 years old to 14 years of age. Language in general is an important dimension of a nation’s identity. The goals of the Romanian language classes and activities, organized on various occasions, are to promote, learn, and deepen the Romanian language, culture, and spiritual values. On December 1st, it was the Romanian children’s turn to share their history and traditions. More than 40 children participated, and were coordinated by Romanian language teachers, Presbytera Sanda Cărbune and Alina Vance.
The celebration was opened with a prayer by His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae, then the children sang the National Hymn. Those present discovered, through a journey on the map of Romania, personalities and traditions related to the celebration of Christmas in different parts of Romania.
St. Andrew the Apostle’s evening ended with the participation of the clergy and many faithful of Sts. Constantine and Helen Cathedral in the extraordinary concert given by the Madrigal - Marin Constantin National Chamber Choir at St. James Lutheran Church in Chicago. The concert marked the 60th anniversary of the founding of the choir by Marin Constantin and included Romanian and international carols.
Finally, on Friday evening, December 1st, 2023, the clergy and faithful of the Cathedral of the emperor and empress, Sts. Constantine and Helen, prayed together at the Te Deum for the National Day of Romania. His Eminence Metropolitan Nicolae pronounced prayers of thanksgiving to God for all the gifts and blessings poured upon the sons and daughters of the Romanian people all over the world, including the sacrifice of those who brought about the Great Union of 1st December, 1918.
May God grant many years to Romania, and many years to Romanians!
